Rotary vapor-engine



2 Sheets-Sheet l.

R. HEWSON;

ROTARY VAPOR ENGINE.

No. 382,424. Patented May 8, 1888.

(No Model.) 7

(No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2. v

R. HEWSON.

ROTARY VAPOR ENGINE.

, Patented May 8, 1888.

1 ANITED STATES Fries.

PATENT ROTARY VAPOR=ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.382,424, dated May 8,1888.

' Application filed November 19, 1887. Serial No. 255,669. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ROBERT HEwsoN, of the city and county of SanFrancisco, State of California, have invented an Improvement in RotaryVapor-Engines; and I hereby declare the following-to be a full, clear,and exact de scription of the same.

My invention relates to a novel engine in which vapor or gas underpressure is employed as a motor.

It consists of a vaporizing chamber or generator into which gasoline orother easily-vaporized and preferably inflammable substance is admitted,and where it is converted into a vapor or gas, valves and gates by whichthe escape of this vapor or gas is controlled, and apeculiarly-constructed wheel, journaled so as to rotate in closeproximity with the discharge openings from the generator,together withde-- tails of construction, all of which will be more fully explained byreference to the accompa nying drawings, in which- Figure l is aperspective view of my apparatuswith a portion of one of the endchambers broken away to show the tubes. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectiontaken through the apparatus, showing the valves, the inlet'ports,

and the rotary wheel. Fig. 3is a vertical section taken through theboiler and'one of the heatingfurnaces. Fig. 4 is a view of the dia"phragm, showing the inlet-port. Fig. 5 is a view of a section of thewheel, showing the construction by which it may be driven in eitherdirection. Fig. 6 shows the action of the steam on the wheel.

A is aboiler or generator, which may be made of any suitable ordesirable shape. In

the present case for convenience I have shown it as made rectangularwith the sides suitably braced or stayed to resist internal pressure.Through this generator from one side to the opposite one extend a seriesof fines or tubes, B, and at the opposite ends are the chambers G 0,through which the products of combustion pass, entering the rear chamberfrom the furnace D in the lower part of the generator and returningthence through the tubes 13 to the chamber 0 at the front, from whichthey are allowed to escape into the open air or into a chimney, as maybedesired. I have shown the furnaces in the form of cylinders or tubesof considerable diameter extending through the lower part of thegenerator, and within these tubes are pipes E,which are thicklyperforated with small holes. Into these pipes the &

feed or supply pipes F enterand discharge the vapor or gas into theirinterior, so that it may escape through the numerous perforations and beignited from the outside, thus filling the interior ofthe furnaces witha volume of flame which will soon vaporize the contents of thegenerator.

G is a chamber or casing atone side of the generator, having the shaftH, which in the present case extends through the generator transverselyto the tubes 13 and through the opposite side of the case, where it hasa pinion or belt-pulley fixed upon it, from which power may betransmitted to a gear-wheel or pulley, K, as shown in Fig. 1. The wheelJ rotates in close proximity to a wall or diaphragm, L, which isinterposed between the wheel-casing and the generator. Upon the oppositeside of this wall from the wheel are two close annular chambers, M andM, which are secured to or cast as a part of the diaphragm. Thesechambers have valves N N and valve-stems O, by which they are actuated.They are shown in the present case as extending through the generatortransversely to the fiues and.parallel with the shaft H, and they aremoved by levers P, so that either one or the other of these valves maybe opened to admit the gas or vapor from the generator into the annularchambers M or M, and from these chambers it passes through the openingsor passages Q, which are made diagonally through the diaphragm L, asshown.

The wheel J is made with two concentric sets of buckets, R and It, thesebuckets being peculiarly shaped, so that reactionary force of the vaporstrikingthem will cause the wheel to rotate. The outerset of buckets, R,is set at one angle, so as to receive the impact of the vapor from thediagonally-arranged passages Q, which open from the annular chamber M,and this causes the wheel to rotate in one direction. If it is desiredto reverse the rotation of the wheel, the valve N,which opens thechamber M, is closed and the valve N, which opens the chamber M, isopened, so as to admit the vapor or gas to strike the buckets R, whichare inclined in an opposite direction from the buckets R.

ICO

This causes the wheel to rotate in an opposite direction. As the vaporor gas escapes through the wall in the outer portion of the chamber G,it passes out through a pipe, S, and is conveyed by it into a pipe, '1,which extends across the front of the furnace. This pipe serves as asort of reservoir or supply from which the gas or vapor is admitted intothe pipes F, leading to the furnace, by means of valves or cocks U. Bythis construction the gas or vapor, after it has been. exhausted throughthe wheel, is led directly into the furnaces, and is employed as a fuelto vaporize the liquid which is fed into the generator through the pipeV. This liquid, which may be gasoline or other hydrocarbon, is pumped inby means of a pump driven by the engine, and not here shown.

In order to regulate the air-supply and mix as much air with the vaporas may be desirable for the best heating effects, I have shown a sleeveor collar, W, fitted upon each of the feed-pipes F. These collars haveeach a number of inclined openings, X, made in them extending from theoutside to the center, and corresponding holes are made in the pipes F,so that as the vapor is forced through the pipes F and into thecombustion-chambers E a certain proportion of air will be drawn inthrough the inclined openings X and mixed with the vapor, so as toincrease its combustion and heating capacity. The amount of air admittedis regulated by turning the sleeve W so as to carry the holes X more orless out of line with the holes in the pipes F, and, if desired, theymay be turned so far as to entirely out off the air-supply and close theholes altogether, thus forming a simple and easily-regulated apparatus.

Y is a pipe leading upward from the top of the generator and having asafety-valve in the transverse portion Z. The stem at of this Valveextends upward through a hole in the top of the valvechamber Z, and alever, b, with a weight, 0, serves to regulate the pressure which ismaintained within the generator. Whenever the pressure becomes too greatand the safety-valve is opened, the escaping vapor passes through apipe, d, which leads it di- 1. The generator having the annular chambersM M and perforated diaphragm upon one side, valves by which vapor or gasunder pressure may be admitted into the chambers from the generator, anda reactionary wheel journaled so as to rotate in close proximity withthe perforated diaphragm, substantially as herein described.

2. The generator or boiler having the wheelcasing and perforateddiaphragm upon one side, a wheel having concentric sets of bucketsstanding in opposition to each other, and corresponding annular chambersformed upon the back of the perforated diaphragm and communicating withthe openings therein, in combination with the valves whereby the gas maybe-admitted into these annular chambers from the generator and thencedelivered to either set of wheel-buckets, so as to drive the wheel ineither direction, substantially as herein described. T t

3. The reversible reactionary wheel consisting of the two sets ofbuckets set reversely to each other and concentrically, one set withinthe other, substantially as and for the purpose herein described.

4. The generator, wheel-case, perforated diaphragm, annular chambers,and double reactionary wheel, in combination with the discharge-pipeconnecting with the wheel-case, and pipes leading therefrom to thegenerator furnace or furnaces and having controllingvalves,substantially as herein described.

5. The generator having the double reactionary wheel journaled withinthe wheelcase at one side, the annular chambers, and intermediateperforated diaphragm through which vapor under pressure may bedischarged from the generator upon the wheel, in combination with thevalves, valve-stems, and controlling hand-levers, substantially asherein described.

6. The generator having the furnaces and returnflues extending throughit from one end to the other, having a double reactionary wheelcontained within a wheel-case upon one of the sides, a double perforateddiaphragm with annular connecting-chambers and controlling-valves, and adischarge-pipe connecting with the wheel-case and having pipes leadingtherefrom into the furnaces, substantially as herein described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand.

' ROBERT HEWSON.

Witnesses:

S. H. NOURSE, J. H. BLOOD.

